Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1481540
8 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 12 OCTOBER 2022 JAMES DEBONO AN absolute majority of voters aged between 16 and 35 (52%) trust neither of the two political leaders and a relative majority (34%) will not vote if an election is held now. These findings from a Mal- taToday survey released last Sunday suggest that among this category political agnostics are now more numerous than sup- porters of either party. Moreover, among the young, while Labour has lost a substan- tial eight points since July, the PN has not only lost 11 points but has been surpassed by AD- PD which scores a record 8%. Significantly, Grech's trust rat- ing in this category falls to an abysmal 7% compared to Abela's 35%. Yet, while Abela remains more popular than Grech, in a clear indication that Labour is also losing consent among younger voters, the Prime Min- ister lost a staggering 12 points since July. Forced cohabitation in the PN This suggests that Labour's enduring majority, especial- ly among younger people, is increasingly dependent on a non-contest with a zombie op- position. The PN may live in the hope that at some point voters will vote for it by default of it being the only alternative to Labour, or that a new charismatic leader will come out of nowhere with a magical ability to reassemble the pro-EU coalition of 2003. Incidentally, the 2003 general election was the last time the PN had an absolute majority in the country. But the downward spiral among younger voters suggests that the PN is at risk of extinc- tion. One cannot help asking: would the country's opposition be bet- ter served by a plurality of po- litical voices who actually stand for something than by an oppo- sition in which rival factions are forced to cohabit? For, like chil- dren in an unhappy marriage, the rival factions in the PN may well feel relieved after a divorce. In a nutshell, the survey not only suggests growing disen- chantment with the two-party system among young voters, but also a collapse of the PN, which appears disconnected from younger voters. This is a clear indication that the PN's brand has become toxic for most young voters. Young, educated and agnostic The survey also shows that a higher level of education also contributes to waning political loyalties. In fact, among tertiary educat- ed, 49% distrust both political leaders. The only difference is that in this segment the PN re- mains marginally stronger than Labour in an indication that this category includes a segment of older upper middle class PN voters. ADPD also registers a respect- able 7% among the university educated. This trend suggests that polit- ical disillusionment is stronger among tertiary educated young people. The survey also suggests that what we are seeing now is a rein- forcement of a trend which was already established in surveys conducted before the electoral campaign, which was reflected in a record level of abstentions in the election itself. Surveys conducted before the election already suggested that the young and higher educated prevailed among political ag- nostics. But the percentage of young voters who distrust both Grech and Abela has shot up by 17 points from February levels and by 16 points from July levels. The percentage of young peo- ple who will not be voting has shot up from 19% in February to 23% in July to 33% now. Similar patterns are seen among the ter- tiary educated where distrust in both leaders has increased from 34% in February to 43% in July and to 49% now. But while it is easy to find rea- sons why younger and educated voters are rejecting a political system marred by corruption and patronage it is harder to understand why these voters are punishing the PN after a La- bour dominated decade, which saw the country changing at breath-taking speed. One reason for this is that while younger voters may be increasingly critical of some of these changes, they are also wary of an opposition which looks like a throw-back to a past which they no longer recognise or relate to. Young political agnostics: Is Malta The political choices of young voters will have party chiefs scratching their heads. James Debono tries to understand how these voters could be shaping the political landscape